Just To Be With You
by PrincessAliTheLioness
Summary: Simba and Nala are teens, dealing with; drama, friendship,bullies, romance, family issues, obligations, responsibilities through the ups and downs Simba would do anything just to be with Nala, but what about her?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N **

_**hey just a little something for you guys! this is kind of an experimentation, different from "the prince and the huntress" should I continue it or just leave it as a one shot?**_

_**hope you like it and please leave me a review telling me what you think**_

**_love_**

**_-az_**

**Just to be with you**

Simba ran to the back to pride rock where he knew he would find Nala, his lessons today ended early because his father had to tend to a neighboring kingdom emergency, the teenage prince walked inside the den looking for the cream-colored lioness but he only found their mothers resting after their morning hunt

"Hey mom" he walked smiling towards them "good morning miss Sarafina"

"Good morning little prince" they said at the same time, then looked at each other and laughed

"Mom I-" Simba rolled his eyes

"I know, I know, you are not little anymore" the queen said mocking the young lion

"True, see the growing mane? I'm not a cub anymore" Simba said pointing at his head "anyways, Have you seen Nala?" he asked looking at the two lionesses

"She's by the acacia trees" answered Sarafina with a smile

"Thank you!" Simba said before running out of the den. The two mothers shook their heads at the cub-like energy of the teen.

When he saw Nala in the distance he decided to sneak up on her from behind, he approached her silently

"I can hear you breathing, you big dummy" she said without facing him when he was about to pounce on her "you really suck at this Simba" she laughed walking away from him he pulled her hind leg with his paw

"Hey!" she protested when she fell in to the ground and burst out laughing when Simba started tickling her "stop it!" she said shifting so she was in her back, Simba held her in the ground continued tickling her the difference in size between male was now starting to show in the two, Simba was now bigger and heavier than her so she couldn't push him of her

"Say: Simba is the smartest the bravest and strongest and… handsomest lion in the pride" he said not letting her up

"As if!" she said scoffed

"Just say it Nala" he demanded

"Just get off!" she grunted

"Say it!" he said tickling her again

"Okay, okay! Simba is the smartest the bravest and strongest and handsomest lion in the pride!" she yelled

"And the best fighter" he added

"You're the best everything. Now get off!" she said

"It's true" he said letting her up turning his back on her

"True that you are as heavy as a hippo" she said before she pounced on him when he the two tumbled around laughing until she flipped him in the air pinning him down

"Why are we always fighting so much?" the golden lion asked looking up at her

"Because it's fun" Nala shrugged still pinning him down

"Yeah…" Simba answered, the light shone behind her, her eyes sparkled, and his smile made his heart flutter_, wow she look like an angel _he thought and couldn't help to stare dreamily at the young lioness

"What?" Nala noticed his eyes set on her

"Your face…" the prince said

"What about it?" she asked

"It's just…pretty" Simba said with a grin

"Oh" Nala blushed and got off him quickly "thanks…"

"Was that weird?" the young lion asked, lately him and Nala had had a lot more of these ``weird awkward moments``

"I don't know… a little maybe" she shrugged "but I didn't mind" she smiled shyly

"I don't know what's wrong with me…" Simba said looking away from teenage lioness "I just keep on having all these strange thoughts"

"What kind of thoughts?" Nala asked curios

"Just thoughts, thoughts about you and me…" he the golden prince said facing her, Simba was confused, they've been friends ever since he could remember, they spent all their time together, and they were very close they were always hugging and cuddling, it was normal to them until one day it wasn't to the young lion he started seeing his best friend in a different way, he liked this new feelings and thoughts but he didn't understand it and for that they scared him.

"Tell me" Nala insisted on him sharing his thoughts with her

"They're just thoughts, they don't mean anything" he shrugged

"Oh" the cream lioness said a little disappointed, Simba noticed he wanted to share them with her but he didn't want to scare her, or her to think that they were totally weird and out-of-place, silence_ just talk to her Simba! Maybe that will stop having this awkward moments _the prince told himself

His heart beating fast as Nala's eyes were intently looking at his "Look, it's just that lately I-" he started after a few seconds of silence

"Hey there Simba!" Nala rolled her eyes when she heard the annoying voices female of Shanti and Yara, Shanti, the two were the mean girls of the pride. They not only were in love with Simba, but they also happened to hate Nala to death. Simba in a way was thankful for the interruption for some reason talking to Nala about this was nerve-racking.

"Hey Shanti, hey Yara" Simba greeted

"How's the future king?" Yara asked giggling

"I'm good, how are you two?" he asked politely

"Oh were fine, but we´ll be even better if you go with us to the water hole" Shanti answered batting her eyelashes

"Why not?" the golden lion shrugged, maybe latter would be easier to talk to Nala

"Great!" Yara and Shanti beamed

"We could go for a little while. Right Nala?" Simba said looking at Nala for her approval

"Really Simba? It's the water hole" Nala asked, they`ve always found that place to be dull

"You don't HAVE to come if you don't want to Nala, we were only asking Simba" Yara snapped

"Fine with me, I wouldn't want to spend another second around you two" Nala rolled her eyes and began to walk away

"Nala wait!" Simba tried following her to convince her to come along but she kept walking further away from him

"Simba, she`s just being selfish. As the future king need to know all the members of the pride, not just one" Yara said blocking the prince's path, he sighed and decided to go with them at least for a while and when he came back he would talk to his best friend.

Nala silently walked from the other young lions after hearing what Yara said, _maybe she's right Simba is the future king and he does needs to know the rest of the pride_, _maybe I'm holding him back, maybe I'm selfish to want Simba all to herself_, but she couldn't help to feel that way, specially lately she wanted him close at all times.

The young lioness walked in the grassland she wasn't looking when she stumbled into something, or more precisely in to someone, she was nose to nose with a lion that she haven't seen before

"Hey" he said smiling inches away from her he had aqua eyes like her, sand colored fur with a brown growing mane

Nala's eyes widen with shock and quickly backed away from the strange lion "MOM!" she yelled running away from there towards the den, strange rogue males were not welcome in the pride lands and the only thing Nala could think of doing was warning the adult lionesses.

"wait!" he said trying to catch up her until they got to pride rock, the young male stood outside dumb folded at the majesty of the enormous rock, while Nala went inside and came back out with Sarabi and Sarafina

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" asked the queen

"My name is Tojo and I'm Kiapo's son, we were attacked by hyenas and before he died my father told me to come here and look for the king and queen, he said they would help me, please there's no one left you have to help me" Tojo pleaded

"Well Tojo, I'm queen Sarabi, king Mufasa is not here right now, but I would be glad to help you" she smiled at Tojo

"Thank you" he returned the smile

"Come inside, we'll get you something g to eat while we wait for my husband" she said walking back to the den, the young lion followed her "by the way, this is Sarafina, and this is Nala" she said introducing the three

"Nice to meet you" he said politely

the lionesses brought some meat for the young lion, he ate it without hesitating, Tojo had been traveling for more than two days, after his pride was attacked by hyenas, kiapo wanted to make sure his son would be safe so he sent him to the pride lands, he was an old friend of Mufasa and he knew, Tojo would be received with open arms

"Poor dear" said Sarafina feeling bad for Tojo after hearing what he went trough

"You don't have to worry anymore, I'm sure my husband will be glad to help you" the queen said with a warm smile

Tojo smiled feeling welcomed and thanked them for their hospitality

"Well Mufasa isn't going to be back for a couple of hours Tojo, I'm sure Nala would love to show you around, you know to pass the time" Sarafina said "right Nala?" she asked her daughter who was staring away in trance thinking about what happened earlier with Simba

"Uh? Oh yeah, yeah" she said turning to look at her mom pretending to be paying attention

"Great! Now run along you two" Sarafina said gently pushing Nala

"What? Where?" the female teen said confused

"Always with your head in the clouds" her mother answered "You are going to show Tojo around"

"But mom-" the daughter argued

"Go. Now" Sarafina said raising an eyebrow

Nala sighed and got up "fine" she said leaving with Tojo following behind her

"I'll call you when the king is back" Sarabi said and then she turned to her friend "since when is Nala the official tour guide of the pride?" she laughed

"She needs to make more friends, she only hangs out with Simba and she does not get along with those girls" Sarafina shrugged

"I suppose, Mufasa wants to start giving Simba daily lessons" the queen mused

"See? We don't want Nala to be alone" the mother said happy with her decision

"Of course not, but Simba is going to like this one bit" Sarabi said knowing how protective her son was with Sarafina's daughter

"You have very pretty eyes" Tojo complimented as him and Nala walked around pride rock

"Thanks…They're the same color as yours" the lioness said not paying much attention to him

"Yeah but they look better on your beautiful face" he said grinning

She gave him a polite smile not minding Tojo's compliment much, Tojo was nice but she was tired so she walked towards some trees

"Is this part of the tour?" Tojo asked with a smirk as Nala lay down

"Nope, I'm just tired and I like the shadow" she said with a yawn

Tojo was standing there not knowing what to do when Nala's eyes closed, he found it odd how little attention she paid to him normally girls would go crazy over him.

Simba grew tired of the Yara and Shanti so he decided to go look for Nala, he walked around and saw her in the distance sleeping under a tree and suddenly out of nowhere he saw a strange male around his age near her, a low growl escaped Simba's throat as he charged in the stranger's direction, he did not want any rogues around Nala, he jumped protectively in front of Nala snarling and growling causing Tojo to step back surprised

"_Simba_!" Nala yelled from behind surprised at his ferocity his teeth and claws bared, ready to strike "Simba what are you doing?!"

"He's a rogue, he's not welcome here" Simba said keeping his glare on the other male

"He's not a rogue, he just joined the pride" she said stepping between the two

"What?" he asked looking down at Nala

"Your parents allowed him to stay" she explained while Simba's eyebrows furrowed

"What are you doing with her?" he asked Tojo_ oh so that's why she kept her distance, she has a boyfriend _he thought to himself

"She was just showing me around dude, I didn't know she had a boyfriend I swear!" the sand colored lion defended himself

"He's not my boyfriend!" "I'm not her boyfriend!" Nala and Simba said at the same time

"Oh. I thought you two- um" Tojo said confused

"Simba, this is Tojo, Tojo this is Simba he's-" Nala introduced before being interrupted by the prince

"The future king and her best friend" Simba finished

"Well… nice to meet you" Tojo said extending his paw for Simba to shake

The golden lion looked down at the new comer's paw and "uh huh, whatever" he said getting up "let's go Nala" Simba said signaling for her to follow him

"I'm not going with you" she said

"What?" he asked in disbelief

"You heard me" Nala stated "I'm hanging out with Tojo"

Simba sighed "La if it's because I left with Yara and Shanti I'm sorry"

"It has nothing to do with that, Tojo is very nice, I think we all could be friends-" she said

"No, thank you" the prince said turning his head away

"Fine then leave" Nala said shrugging

"You want me to leave so you can be with him?!" Simba asked offended

"You are welcome to stay, as long as you stop being so rude!" Nala said

The prince grunted rolling his eyes "fine!"

"Great!" Nala smiled at him, he returned it with a small one, and meanwhile Tojo watched the whole exchange in confusion

The three stayed and talked getting to know each other, Tojo noticed the way Simba and Nala would steal glances of each other, and the way they loving looked at their _best friend _let Tojo know that there was something more there, he did had an eye on Nala when he first met her but it was obvious who owned her heart, being the nice guy he was and also the ultimate meddler he decided to help them move forward from this _just friends_ status.

Sarabi and Sarafina walked towards the three teens "I see you've met Tojo" the queen said to her son "your father and his were good friends growing up, maybe you two can follow their paw prints"

"Yeah mom maybe…" the prince smiled at her mother

"Well we have to go on our afternoon hunt" Sarabi said

"Time for your hunting lessons Nala" Sarafina said to her daughter

"Okay mom. I'll be right back, try not to kill each other while I'm gone!" she joked before following the older lionesses

Simba and Tojo were left in an awkward silence before Simba sighed "hey um sorry about earlier I just- I don't know what happened to me" he apologized

"We're cool Simba, I completely understand" Tojo smiled

"Really?" Simba smiled _wow Nala was right he is very nice_ he thought

"Yeah, I would be pissed too if I saw my gorgeous girlfriend alone with some stranger" the brown manned teen smirked

"What? No!" Simba laughed nervously "She's not my girlfriend"

"But you wish she was…" Tojo lifted an eyebrow at him

"yes- I mean no!" the prince countered himself

The other teen snorted "I've seen the way you look at her Simba, you like her if not even love her!"

"Love. That's what it is" he sighed "Is it that obvious?" the golden prince asked

"To everyone but her apparently" the aqua eyed lion said "you should tell her"

"What? No way!" Simba said looking at Tojo as if he was crazy

"Think about it dude- um can I dude you?" Tojo asked he had never met a prince before, Simba seemed like a _cool dude _to him, but he didn't want to disrespect the king's son

"Sure" Simba chuckled

"Cool" Tojo laughed

"You were saying?" the prince wanting to get back to the topic of Nala

"Oh yeah… you should tell her how you feel I'm sure she feels the same way about you" the young lion continued

"I don't know…" Simba sighed

"Nala is beautiful! Sooner or later another lion will be interested in her and you can't get jealous or mad there is nothing you can do about it, because you are only friends you will have to sit back and watch how any random guy takes her away from you because you didn't have the courage to tell her?!" Tojo said dramatically

"Is that random lion guy you?" the prince asked with an eyebrow raised

"No!" Tojo said

"We're dudes and all, but Nala's still off-limits for you" Simba said with a serious face

Tojo gasped "I swear I won't go near her, I don't want any trouble I was just-"

"I'm just messing with you Tojo!" Simba burst into laugh "You were right though I have to tell her, I'll tell her tonight!" the golden teen said

"That's what I'm talking about!" Tojo encouraged

"Thanks for the talk dude" Simba smile

"Not a problem dude" the sand colored lion answered.

After fixing his wrongs and gaining a new _dude_ there was one more thing Simba needed to do before the day ended, and that was to tell Nala how he felt.

Simba and Nala went up to the very top of pride rock where they would sometimes star-gaze, this time however the prince was more focused on her, he couldn't help but to stare captivated by her beauty, Nala was not only beautiful but also funny, caring, sweet yet spunky, loyal, centered, in other words perfect for him, he had to tell her otherwise he would regret it

"The stars are up there you know" Nala said in a sweet voice noticing Simba's gaze

Simba softly chuckled and put his arm around Nala, she rested her head on his shoulder and smiled while looking in to his eyes "your eyes shine even brighter than them" he said making her heart skip a beat, she was beyond happy at this point, so what happened after sent her to the moon and back, Simba gently grabbed her face and caressed it he got closer so that his nose was touching hers and stayed there for a second before the two slowly joined in a kiss, this wasn't the first time they kissed they tried it once before as cubs just to see what the big deal was, but it was nowhere as loving and sweet as this one, Nala smiled resting her forehead on his, Simba leaned closer whispered in her ear "I love you Nala" she gasped before looking at him with a sly smile

"I love you too Simba" she said before pinning his back to the ground "very, very much" she said kissing him again. The two stayed up there for as long as they could, enjoying their first moments as an official couple a couple whose love was infinite as the stars in the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

I've already uploaded this chapter before but I deleted it because I wasn't feeling it, I changed some stuff and its a little better now, i'll try to upload often but I'm also working on "a throne for three" and on a surprise story that I will upload soon!

thank you for your reading and your reviews :)

-AZ

Chapter 2

The queen and king sat outside the den talking about their day as they usually did at nights

"Have you seen Nala?" Sarafina asked walking towards them

"No…I thought she was in the den" Mufasa answered

"She's not, and neither is Simba" Sarafina said raised eyebrow

"Umm… I think I know where to find those two" Sarabi said with a smirk

"Stargazing?" Mufasa asked knowingly and the queen nodded

"Or maybe they are finally confessing their love for each other" Sarafina joked making the royal couple laugh

The three adults made their way silently to the peak of pride rock and saw Simba and Nala kissing "I told you they would be here!" said Sarabi making Simba and Nala jump in surprise

"So that's what you two call stargazing, huh?" Sarafina said raising an eyebrow at them

The teens looked away embarrassed, their parents laughed walking towards them

"What is going on with you two?" the queen asked Simba and Nala were circled by the smirking adults, they knew very well what was going on, but as their parents it was their duty to embarrass them as much as possible

"I…I just asked Nala to be my girlfriend…" the prince said looking at Nala

"And…I said yes" she continued with a shy smile

Sarafina and Sarabi looked at each other "I called it!" Nala's mom squealed

"You did!" Sarabi laughed "this is so romantic!"

"I knew my son would turn out to be a romantic guy, just like his father" Mufasa said grabbing Simba giving him a noogie

"Dad stop!" Simba laughed releasing himself from his father's hold and going to Nala

"So…is it okay with you?" they asked their parents

The adults looked at each other with smiles "you have our blessings" Mufasa answered

"As long as it doesn't interfere with your lessons…" Sarabi said looking at her son

"And your hunt practice…" Sarafina said to her daughter

"Yes mom" Simba and Nala grinned

"Now go to the den and get some sleep, it's getting late" Mufasa said before they all made their way down the den

It was still dark in the pride lands the sun was about to rise, Simba opened his eyes with a big smile on his face he stretched his arms and legs before getting up and going to where Nala slept he was deciding on whether or not he should wake her up or not, after their parents woke up they would have to go to their respective lessons, the prince wanted to spend some time with her before that but she looked so peaceful and beautiful he didn't wanted to interrupt her sleep, luckily for him Nala woke up by herself

"Simba?" she said in a sleeping voice while stretching

"Good morning La" he said nuzzling her "come on"

"Where are we going?" the young lioness yawned

"We are going to watch the sunrise" the golden teen answered Nala got up and followed him outside of the den

Once there the prince grinned while sitting down and signaling for her to do the same, Nala still had some sleepiness left in her turquoise eyes Simba chuckled and said "I know you're not exactly a morning lioness, but I wanted you to see this" he said as the yellow sunrays began to blend with the remaining blackish blue night sky

"Wow" Nala said amazed

"You one day everything the light touches will be mine" Simba bumped her gently

"show off" she bumped him back with a chuckle, simba smirked and stared at her for a moment, Nala realized that the run rays had begun to shine upon her and blushed, only Simba could make her feel this special and she was more than happy to be his

After a while the sun was illuminating the lands Nala was resting her head in Simba's shoulder when Zazu flew towards them

"So it's true!" the majordomo said landing in front of the couple "the seeds of romance have fully blossomed, congratulations on finally admitting to each other what was obvious to everyone around you"

"Who told you?" Nala asked

"Nothing happens on these lands without me knowing" Zazu said proudly

"What a gossipy bird" Simba smirked

"I do not gossip!" the hornbill countered

"Yes you do" the prince said poking him

"I do not!" The blue bird puffed his feathers

"Yes you do! You're as gossipy as Shanti and Yara" the prince said

"Do not compare me to a couple of silly adolescents!" the majordomo annoyed

"Zazu! He's only doing it to piss you off" Nala chuckled

"It always works" Simba laughed

The bird rolled his eyes at Simba who was still laughing "already tormenting Zazu son?" the king walked to them with a smile

"Good morning dad"

"Good morning Mufasa"

"Good morning sire!" The three greeted

"Good morning to you all" he said "ready for your lessons son?"

"Yes dad" the prince said getting up "I'll see you later" he smiled at Nala giving her a quick kiss on the cheek, before leaving with Zazu and Mufasa.

After hearing the morning report Zazu flew off to continue his chores, leaving the king alone with his smiling prince

"Tell me son, have you ever seen me disrespect or mistreat your mother in any way?" Mufasa asked looking at his son

"Never dad" Simba answered honestly

"Growing up I saw how my father neglected and in many occasions mistreated my mother, she gave him her heart but he didn't treasured it" Mufasa sighed "I've tried to set a good example for you, I want you to treat Nala with all the respect and care in the world, just like I treat your mother"

"Yes father" the golden teen nodded

"And I know that you are young and hormones will get to you and you're going to want to… I don't have to give you the talk again do I?" the king asked his son

"No need to dad, I know what you mean…" the prince said feeling awkward "Yeah, I wouldn't want to piss her off; she will have my head on a stick if I ever cross the line" Simba laughed

"She's a strong girl. She knows how to put you in your place and I think that is just what you need" the king said

"I love her dad" Simba stated

"You're really growing up fast son" his father nodded slowly, before going back to their patrolling.

Back at pride rock Nala had just catch her first prey, it was a small gazelle but it was an impressive catch considering how young she was and that she caught it all by herself

"Good job sweetie!" Sarafina nuzzled her daughter

"Well done dear!" Sarabi congratulated

"Thanks" Nala smiled

"That was amazing!" "That was pure awesomeness!" Tama and Kula two lionesses the same age as Nala said

"Thanks" the cream colored lioness giggled

"Ugh it wasn't all that impressive girls" Yara said

"Yeah it was just a small gazelle" Shanti added walking next to Yara

"But it sure beats nothing" Nala said narrowing her eyes at the two

"Whatever, you only caught it because Sarabi has been training you long before all of us" Shanti rolled her eyes

"Do you have a problem with that Shanti?" Sarabi asked sternly "Because I could train you too of you'd like to…four hours a day would be good start"

"Um… I..." Shanti laughed nervously

"You see Shanti diminishing others success won't help you accomplish anything, you got put in the effort like Nala did" the wise queen spoke before leaving with the other adults

"It's a good thing that you're learning how to hunt Nala because after Simba dumps you you'll be nothing but a simple huntress" Yara said when the adults were out of earshot, It seemed like the entire kingdom heard about her and Simba, the young lioness only rolled her eyes and walked away

"Nala wait!" Kula and Tama followed her; she stopped and turned to look at them

"You have to teach us how to do that hunting thing!" Kula said excitedly when they reached her

"Yeah teach us your tricks!" Tama grinned

"Sure" Nala smiled

After a while Nala was doing something she would never have to do, hanging out with girls and actually enjoy it. Growing up she always avoided them because she thought they were all as mean as Shanti and Yara, Nala wasn't exactly a girly cub she was more focused on going in dangerous adventures with Simba, she loved wrestling, play fighting, and all the thing girls her age hated. Tama and Kula were really nice and Nala already liked them.

"We should hang out more often" Nala said as they walked towards the den to eat

"Totally, I don't know why it took us so long" Tama said with a chuckle

"Cause Shanti and Yara told us that Nala hated us, remember?" Kula laughed

"And you believed them?" Nala asked with an eyebrow raised

"Well we were cubs" tama shrugged "And you never paid attention to anyone but Simba"

"And now we know why…" Kula said with cheeky smile

Nala blushed and looked down "congratulations by the way" Tama smiled

"Yes congrats, you two make the cutest couple" Kula added

"Thanks girls" she smiled sweetly

Nala was happy about how her day went; she got to watch a beautiful sunrise with Simba, take down her first prey and made friends with two cool girls.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The next few months Simba and Nala's grew without even realizing it, Simba grew stronger and taller; his red mane was a lot fuller now, as for Nala her fur was silky and shiny as always and her physic remained slender yet powerful and toned from her long hour of training to become a hunter, the two were in love and long gone were the awkward moments between the two, another change was the fact that they've become closer with the rest of the pride members their age, Kula and Tama we're close friends of Nala after she helped them with their hunting skills and taught them her tricks, Simba enjoyed spending time with his guy friends Malka who was Tama's boyfriend of course his _dude_ Tojo.

Since Tojo came to the pride lands he had become really close friends with Kula they spent a lot of time together, The two were had a lot in common and their personalities complemented each other very well, but she wasn't sure if he had noticed these or even cared, although Tojo would occasionally get flirty with her she didn't thought it meant anything he would flirt with anyone it was part of his personality he didn't seemed to mind the fact that Shanti and Yara would flirt with him every chance they got, why couldn't she do the same? Why couldn't she be confident enough to do the same? How would she ever know if the feeling was mutual if she never had enough courage to show him or tell him that she cared about him as more than a friend?

Every moment she spent with him she felt more and more confused, when were alone he acted like his world revolved around her but when others were around he did the opposite, she was deep in thought one day when he walked to her with a smile on his face.

"Guess what Kula? You're stuck with me again" Tojo said as he lay down next to Kula

"Have they ditched us to be with their loved ones?" she asked dramatically

"Yes, the two singletons abandoned yet again" Tojo nodded

"Singletons?" the lioness laughed "as far as I know you're single because of personal decision"

"What do you mean?" the young male asked

"You know both Yara and Shanti are very interested on you" Kula smirked

"Yeah I know" Tojo shuddered

"What? You're still not over Nala?" the lioness teased

"Hey! All I said was I thought Nala was pretty; can we just get over that?" the blue eyed lion protested "And for your information Kula, shanti and Yara are just not my type, they're mean, shallow, backstabbing and just toxic to be around"

"I know I'm was kidding" Kula giggled hugging him

"You better be" he said hugging her back

"And what is your type, huh Tojo?" Kula smirked still in his arms

"Well, you know just a good girl, sweet, kind, with sparkling red eyes and brown fur" he answered with a smirk "and what's yours?"

"I-um…" she mumbled nervously before some voices interrupted her

"Tojo! Kula!" it was tama and Malka, they were looking for them

Tojo moved away from Kula and yelled back "here we are guys!"

"Hey, we're going to the waterhole for a swim do you guys want to come?" Malka asked

"We even convinced Nala to come" Tama added

"You mean Simba convinced her to come" Malka laughed

"Yea, yeah" tama rolled her eyes with a smile "so you guys coming or not?"

"I'm in" Tojo smiled

"What about you Kula?" Malka asked Kula who's been quiet the whole time

"Um no thank you guys" Kula faked a smile

"Oh come on Kula I'll be fun" Tama insisted

"I know, I-I'm just a little tired" the brown lioness said hiding her real feeling

"Oh okay… well if you want to join us later, you know where we'll be" tama nuzzled her friend

"Okay, guys have fun!" Kula said as Malka and Tama began to leave, Tojo noticed that Kula was upset and hesitated before he finally left

Once they got to the waterhole they met up with Simba and Nala who were resting in the shade of a tree

"Simba and Nala sitting on a tree…" Malka started in singing making everyone laugh

"Where's Kula, guys?" Nala asked

"She didn't wanted to come" Tama shrugged

"Oh" Nala said finding it a bit odd; Kula wasn't usually one to miss the fun, unless she was upset or sick

"Okay! Let's go swimming" Simba rolled his eyes with a smile, even Nala who hated swimming got in, the five young lions enjoyed the refreshing water after a while Nala walked up to Tama

"Don't find it weird that didn't Kula come along?" Nala asked

"A little, I mean she does love swimming" Tama nodded

"Do you think she's okay?"

"Seemed down, but she did say she was tired" Tama replied "maybe she was trying to take a nap before and Tojo woke her up"

"She was with Tojo?"

"Yeah they were talking AND he was hugging her, but then he heard us and he pretended like nothing happened"

Nala wasn't surprised to hear this she knew that Kula liked Tojo and she knew how he was_, no wonder she's upset he keeps leading her on and then acting like nothing happened_ Nala thought "I think I'm going to go talk to her" Tama nodded and went back to her boyfriend

"Hey where are you going?" asked Simba following Nala

"I'm going to go talk to Kula, just to make sure she's okay" she answered

"Why? What happened?" he asked curios

"You're such nosy lion" his girlfriend shook her head

"You promised you would let me in all of the gossip" Simba insisted

"I'll tell you later" she laughed leaving the waterhole

Nala walked back to pride rock hoping to find Kula there after looking around for a while she found her alone in a small den and she looked sad her friend approached her concerned

"Hey Kula, what happened?" Nala asked

"Oh hey Nala" Kula said trying to erase any trace of sadness of her face "nothing happened, everything is great"

"You don't need to lie to me, I know you're upset" Nala said sitting down next to her "does it has anything to do with Tojo?"

"Yes" Kula sighed defeated

"What did he do now?"

"The usual you know, he flirts with me and leads me on to think that he might like me when were alone and then acts like nothing happened, and he just gets me all confused" the brown lioness told her friend

"I don't understand that guy" Nala shook her head

"Maybe it's all in my head and he doesn't even likes me, I mean if he wanted something with you he should already said something"

"I don't know Kula, you've been waiting for him forever and he haven't said anything" Nala said and Kula nodded "maybe it's time you move on"

"I think you're right" she sighed "maybe it's for the best"

The next few weeks after that Kula started avoiding spending time alone with Tojo and whenever they hung out as a group she kept her distance from him and Tojo noticed in even the small things, like moving away when he tried to hug her or looking away when he tried to make eye contact with her.

One day he and Simba relaxing by the waterhole when something called prince's attention

"Tojo, look" Simba said pointing at Kula she was walking and laughing with a guy without noticing Simba or Tojo's presence

"What is it dude- is that Kula?!" Tojo asked surprised "who's that guy?"

"I think that's Chumvi" Simba said squinting

"There's no way she could be dating that guy!" Tojo scoffed

"Whoa! Calm down dude!" Simba laughed "are you jealous or something?"

"I am calm, and I'm not jealous, I just don't think there're on a date"

"Why not?" Simba said lifting en eyebrow

"He just doesn't seem like her type"

"And what is her type?" the prince questioned

"Well I-I thought I was…" Tojo sighed

"Wait! Tojo you like Kula?"

"Um… yes" he answered quietly

"Does she know?"

"Nope"

"Unbelievable! The same guy that convinced me to confess my love for, can't do it himself?" The prince exclaimed

"I tried! But it's I got scared" his friend protested

"I was scared too! But I told her anyways"

"I know, I know, but it doesn't matter now, she obviously like's someone else" Tojo sighed "man this sucks" he started back and forth passing

"Maybe they're just friends" Simba tried to reassure him

"Hey guys!" Nala greeted coming towards them

"Nala can tell us what is going on" Tojo said

"What is going on with what?" Nala asked confused

"We just saw Kula and Chumvi…" Simba started

"Oh aren't they cute? Chumvi just asked her to be his girlfriend" Nala beamed

"Great that is just great!" Tojo said loudly

"What?" Nala asked concerned

"Sooner or later another lion will be interested in her and you can't get jealous or mad there is nothing you can do about it, because you are only friends" Tojo started repeating the speech he gave to Simba the day he came to the pride lands "And you will have to sit back and watch how any random guy takes her away from you because you didn't have the courage to tell her! Goddammit Tojo you should have listened to your own advice, you big moron!" Tojo continued ranting as he walked away from Simba and a very confused Nala

"What's wrong with him?" she asked Simba

"Tojo likes Kula" he told her

"What!?" Nala shouted

"I know I was just as surprised"

"Kula liked Tojo too" she told his boyfriend

"Then why is she dating Chumvi now?"

"Well…. I- I might have said something to her…"

"What did you tell her?"

"That she shouldn't wait for him forever and that she should move on with her life" laughed nervously

"This is all, your fault then" Simba accused

Nala gasped "I was just trying to help!"

"I know but now everything is ruined" the prince stated

"No it's not! Come on I know how to fix this" the lioness smiled

Nala, no! Stop being such a meddler" Simba groaned

"Do you want to hear my plan or not?" she asked with an eyebrow raised

"Yes please"

"I might be a meddler but you're a nosy lion and that's just as bad" Nala laughed at her boyfriend

"And that's why my darling we're simply meant to be" Simba smirked

**so there it was chapter 3 a lot sooner than I expected**

***what do you think Nala's plan is? **

***do you think Kula is really over Tojo?**

***which pairing is your favorite from the story so far? **

**feel free to answer on the reviews, thank you for reading!**

**-AZ **


	4. Chapter 4

_**-AN-**_

_**hey everybody! I just wanted to let y'all know that I do plan on continuing the story, I haven't abandoned it but I just started school again and my schedules are awful so that's my excuse... anyway I would love to see more of your reviews so please leave me one after you read I would really appreciate it!**_

_**love**_

_**-AZ **_

**Chapter 4**

"What's your plan?" The prince questioned his girlfriend

"All we have to do is give the two the perfect setting to confess their feelings for each other" Nala said simply "like a romantic dinner under the stars, with flowers and-"

"Oh sure while we're at it why don't we put together a musical number? we get a huge heart shaped leaf for them to use a boat, and Rafiki to sing while hippos swinging from vines and rhinos in a conga line" Simba said sarcastically

"You don't have to help, if you don't want to" Nala rolled her bright teal eyes

"Nala, I would love to help you but I don't think this is the right thing to do" the prince nuzzled the young lioness "if Kula is really dating Chumvi it wouldn't be okay to set her up with Tojo like that"

"But Tojo-" the young lioness started

"He got himself in to this for not following his own advice" Simba said cutting her of

Nala sighed and rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder "I just wanted to help"

"I know you mean well, but this is between Tojo and Kula" he said licking the top of her head

"There you are turtle doves!" Zazu said while approaching the young couple "king Mufasa is looking for you two"

"Okay, we'll go see him now" Simba sighed

"Thanks Zazu" Nala smiled

The king had asked Sarafina to allow Nala to him and Simba on their patrol around the borders, the three walked around the kingdom both teens listening carefully to Mufasa as he imparted his wisdom, they were a few miles away from pride rock when they heard a male and a female voice yelling at each other the king decided to see what was going on, he told Simba and Nala stayed back while took a closer look

"Would you please at least look at him?" the female cried

"I already told you, I don't want to" Scar spat. From where he was Mufasa saw his brother facing way from a tanned lioness that held a small brownish red cub in her paws

"Scar please!" she begged

"I said no!" the king's brother growled "As far as I'm concerned that cub is not mine!"

"Fine! Then he's not mine either" the lioness roared back before storming away

"Wonderful! Have a nice life!" scar said rubbing his temples

"Scar!" Mufasa's voice boomed

"What! What do you want Mufasa?!" the green eyed lion groaned

"What is going on here?" the golden lion inquired

"Nothing of your concern your highness" Scar began walking away

"I wouldn't call him nothing" Mufasa called, the soft sound of meowing made the back manned lion turn around shocked to discoverer that she had left the cub behind, he froze for a moment before walking towards the cub

"Dad? Simba approached with Nala by his side "Is everything alright?"

"Is that…?" Nala asked with wide eyes

"A cub!" Simba rushed to the infant

"Brownish red fur and green eyes" Mufasa smiling at the small cub "congratulations, you're a father" a low growl escaped his brother's mouth

"That bitch!" scar hissed

"Watch your mouth" the king warned "she is after all, the mother of your cub"

"I don't want this cub, get rid of it" he said simply his brother rolled his eyes at his immaturity. Simba and Nala exchanged concerned looks

"I'll try to find his mother and convince her to take him back" Mufasa sighed "Simba, Nala you're dismissed"

"Yes sir" the two answered while Mufasa left them, they then turned to Scar who was also walking away from them

"Umm uncle scar?" The prince started

"What!?" the older lion grunted

"What do we do with the cub?" Simba raised an eyebrow

"I don't know! Keep it as a pet, put it in a Moses basket and let it float away down the stream , I don't care!" Scar stormed away leaving Simba and Nala alone with the cub

"Geez! Aren't you glad you're not his kid?" Nala mumbled

"Yeah…" he laughed "What do we do?" Simba asked looking helplessly at his little cousin, neither of the two had any experience with cubs as they didn't had any siblings nor no one in the pride had cubs after them.

"Let's just take him to our moms they'll know what to do" she suggested

"Right, good idea" he nodded

"Yeah just…" Nala stared

"Pick him up" the two said at the same time

"No, you pick him up" they gave each other exasperated looks

"He's your cousin Simba" the lioness remarked

"Yeah, but you're-" he started

"A girl? Is that what you were going to say?" she cut him off

"No! Hehe I was going to say that you are much gentler and careful than me" Simba said giving her his best smile

"Uh huh whatever, I'm not going to carrying him all the way to pride rock"

"Fine! I'll carry him" Simba sighed "how do I do it?"

"Just pick him up by the scruff"

"But what if I hurt him?"

"Do it gently"

"But what if I drop him?"

"Just pick him up already!" Nala raised her voice

"Alright, alright no need to bite my head off" he obeyed picking up the cub as carefully as he could, they walked all the way back to pride rock only to find it empty

"They're not here" the young lioness looked around "they're still out hunting"

Simba sat the now sleeping cub on the ground "great, now what?"

"I don't know" Nala replied "I guess we'll just have to wait until our mothers or your father comes back" suddenly the sound of loud crying made the two teens cringe

"What's wrong with him? Simba asked

"Maybe he's hungry" Nala shrugged

"There's still some meat leftover we could give him that" the prince suggested

The small cub turned away the meat, they tried giving him water and even fruits but he rejected everything and cried even louder

"How can something so tiny be so loud?" Simba asked while covering his ears with his golden paws

"What's wrong little guy? Do you miss your mom?" Nala asked licking the cubs head, the infant stretched his paws reaching for her. The young lioness smiled and lay down on the floor holding the small cub in her front paws causing it to immediately stop crying.

"He likes you" Simba smiled seeing the cub curl up in her paws with a happy purr "Nala, what if my dad can't finds his mother?" the prince asked looking down at the brown hairball

"I guess then someone will have to adopt him" Nala shrugged

"I have an idea, you should be his mother!" Simba said enthusiastically

"What?! Are you crazy?" Nala blurted out "No!"

"Why not? Don't you want to be a mother?" The prince questioned

"Well yeah someday, when we're older and we're married- I mean not that I expect us to get married, we just we've only been together for a while and- ugh! You know what I mean, we cannot adopt a cub if we're cubs ourselves Simba!"

"I know, I was kidding!" Simba laughed "You're so cute when you freak out" Nala batted his arm "ouch!"

"Jerk!" she glared

"This jerk is going to be your husband one day" the prince smirked

Nala blushed and looking down, Simba put his paw under her chin making her look up at him the two leaned in for a kiss their ended their moment when the cub began crying again

"What's going on here?" the queen's voice approached them with Sarafina behind them "What are you two doing with a cub?"

"Mom, thank the kings you're here!" Simba said relived

"Nala, who's cub is this?" Sarafina asked her daughter

"It's Scar's"

"What?!" Sarabi and Sarafina asked shocked

"His mother abandoned him, but uncle Scar doesn't want him either so dad is looking for his mom to convince her to take him back" Simba explained, the two mothers exchanged concerned looks

"So you two have been taking care of him all this time?" Sarafina asked

"Yes" Nala and Simba answered

"We've tried everything but he won't stop crying" Nala sighed

"That's because he needs to be fed" Sarabi said taking the cub in her paws

"But he won't eat any of the food we offered him" Simba told his mother

"That's because he's much too young to eat anything, he's needs milk" Sarafina explained

"Oh" Simba and Nala said feeling dumb to not have realized this before

"You two still have a lot to learn" the queen said shaking her head at the young lions


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

There was only a little orange light left in the sky, soon the stars would start to shine upon lands, two figures approached pride rock the king had found the cub's mother and convinced her to come back with him to the pride lands. Once they arrived, the whole pride was gathered inside the den by now everyone knew what happened with the cub

"Mother abandons her cub?"

"How could she leave the cub with scar?"

"Such a young helpless cub" multiple lionesses whispered as the mother entered the den behind the king, Sarabi gave them a look of disapproval that silenced them before handing the cub to his mother, she then sat in the platform next to her mate.

Mufasa offered the lioness a place in the pride and she accepted, the only thing left for her to become a pride lander was the traditional welcoming ceremony, haven't had one since Tojo joined the pride some time ago.

"Please, introduce yourself and tell us why you wish to join the pride" the king commanded

"My name is Zira and this is Nuka" she bowed her head looking at her cub "and I wish to join this pride to give my son a life" the king and queen nodded

"familia yangu, let us welcome Zira an Nuka in to our pride" Mufasa spoke

"We welcome you Zira and Nuka"

"karibu Zira and Nuka!" the pride welcomed the new members

After everyone went to sleep Sarabi and Mufasa stepped outside the den, the golden lion laid down with a sigh, his legs tired and his paws hurting after walking all day just to find the missing mother of the cub

"You had a long day Muffy" Sarabi said while lovingly grooming his mane

"And I'll have a longer one tomorrow; dealing with Scar" he said in a gruff voice "he's not going to be happy to hear that Zira and Nuka are staying here"

"It was the right thing to do; a young inexperienced cub wouldn't be able to take care of a cub out there on her own"

"I know but you know how he's-"

"I know he's a spoiled brat that gets anything he wants by throwing a fit" she grumbled

"Now Sarabi, you know-" the kind tried defending his younger brother

"I know you love your brother Muffy but he needs to learn to be a real lion, and perhaps now that they're here, he'll finally settle down" the queen said optimistic

"I don't think so Bibi, I really don't think so…" he mused

"I guess we'll just have to see" she laid her head on his shoulder

The next morning everyone woke up ready to start the day, Zira looked around feeling a little out of place and confused everyone seem to know exactly what to do and where to go, she was hungry and ready to hunt but she didn't knew of she could or should leave Nuka in the den while she was out, from a distance Simba and Nala watched the young mother and debated whether they should to go greet her or not, they wanted to see how the little Nuka was doing but they were a little intimidated by the lioness and mothers can sometimes be a little protective of their cubs

"Let's just go and say hi" Nala said "Worst case scenario, she tells us to get lost but then at least we would have at least tried to be polite"

"You're right, it's the proper thing to do" Simba inhale deeply and exhale "let's go" they approached her cautiously, once they were in front of her Zira the two put on their best smiles and Nala spoke "um , Zira?" The lioness looked up to the teens while bringing Nuka closer to her "hey, I'm Nala and this is-"

"Simba, prince of the pride lands" the golden lion interrupted with a snotty smile

"Yeah…" Nala rolled her eyes at him before turning to Zira with a smile "we just wanted to introduce ourselves and welcome you to the pride lands"

"Oh thank you" she answered softly

"If you need anything or have any question, we would be glad to help" the younger lioness added

"Well I actually have a question…" Zira began shyly "is it okay if I leave Nuka here while I go hunting?"

Simba and Nala exchanged glances before the prince answered "Zira, you don't have to hunt, you just had a cub"

"But I do need to eat" she stated

"Yes, that's why the hunting party will bring a kill specially for you" Simba explained

"They-they'll hunt for me?" the lioness asked in disbelief

"Yes" Nala nodded

"Why?" Zira questioned, she's been a rogue for as long as she could remember and as a rogue if you don't hunt you starve, period.

"You are part of the pride now, and we are one" Simba shrugged

"We are one?" she asked confused

"Yeah, that's our pride's philosophy" Nala affirmed

"You see, as a pride we need to be an unbreakable unity, trust and rely on each other no matter what" the prince explained Zira nodded understanding what he meant and liking the concept

"So when you have fully recovered or you feel ready to join the hunting party you won't have to leave Nuka alone" Nala reassured the mother

"Yes, any of us would be glad to babysit him" the prince added

"Yeah, I heard you two took care of him yesterday" Zira said looking down at the sleeping cub "thank you"

"Not a problem" Nala beamed

"Well, he is my cousin after all" Simba smiled

_**a/n**_

_**please don't forget to review! **_

_**love**_

_**-az**_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The two teens then left the mother and cub to rest and headed outside where they bumped in to the rest of the pride that was waiting for the two to join them; their parents had proud smiles on their faces as they saw them with Zira and were happy at how polite the two teens were. After saying their goodbyes they parted ways, Simba and the rest of the young males went with Mufasa and Nala and the other females joined the hunting party, Sarabi, Sarafina and Nala walked ahead of the group with the rest of the teens close behind.

"What made you go greet Zira?" the queen asked Nala while they walked

"Well, I just wanted to make sure she felt welcome" Nala shrugged and Sarabi nodded "It's important to get to know all that all the members of the pride in order for us to truly remain as one"

"That was really nice of you sweetheart" Sarafina quickly nuzzled Nala

"You're already speaking like a queen" Sarabi said giving her a warm smile

Nala blushed and looked down at her paws with a shy smile, _"already speaking like a queen?" Me? How could I ever be a queen?_ Nala thought b_y marrying Simba obviously_ ,she answered her own mental question, her eyes widen at the thought, obviously she loved him but by marrying Simba she would also be marrying a whole kingdom being not only his wife but also his queen and mother of his heir, was this what he expected of her? What everyone expected of her? She began to feel a knot on her throat, _why am even thinking about this? Come on Nala focus on the now _she said to herself trying to shake the subject off her mind.

While the adult lioness took down a buffalo the younger females waited by the shadow for their turn to hunt, Nala laid on a boulder near the tree chatting up with Kula and Tama, as usual Yara and Shanti were complaining about something

"Things are just so unfair around here" Yara whined

"I know, like why do we have to be out here on the burning sun while that teen mom outlander gets to stay at home and sleep all day!?" shanti added

"Yeah and on top of everything we have to bring a special kill for her lazy ass" Yara rolled her eyes

"That's enough you two" Nala said from her place "you know the pride's rules, she just had a cub and it is in her right to rest"

"All I know is she's getting rewarded for being Scar's little whore" shanti hissed

"You have no right to insult Zira" Nala stared with a straight face

"You know? I think all this anger is coming out of jealousy…" Kula said

"Don't worry girls, one day you will get your rewards, unless being "Scar's little whore" as you call it, is an reward on its own for you two" Tama added with a smirk, Yara and shanti gasped and the glared at the group, the two of them unbeknown to each other had been sneaking in to the older lion's den, but Scar knew that him getting caught involved with the young lionesses would be too big of a scandal so he ended things with the two to instead he focus his interest on Zira ,a then pride less, helpless naïve lioness, and of course shanti and Yara took his preference towards her personal, a mix of shame and fear washed on shanti and Yara's faces they knew that if their parents or even worst the king found out they would be in big trouble so they said nothing more and walked away from Kula, Tama and Nala.

"That'll shut them up for a while" Kula giggled

"Hey Nal, Maybe when you become the queen you can exile those two to the outlands" Tama and Kula laughed but Nala's eyes shifted to the ground in deep anxious thought as if the word queen was detonator to it.

On the other side of the kingdom Simba walked next to his father with his friends following behind the two, Mufasa had allowed the young males to stay on the pride as guards and they were now learning everything they needed to know to defend these lands, after a moment of silence the king spoke to his son "it was very considerate of you to personally greet and welcome Zira today"

"Thank you, but It was Nala's idea actually I just went along with her" Simba chuckled

"A wise king always listens to his even wiser queen" his father replied

"I'm not a king and Nala is not my queen" the teen reminded his father

"Yet" smirked Mufasa, behind them chuckles "Natural leader, wise beyond her years and an exceptional hunter, and very beautiful, the qualities of a great queen, don't you think son? The prince smiled awkwardly but kept quiet and looked down at the ground, why was his father bringing this up right now? _I'm still a teen what do I know? I don't know if Nala would make a good queen as much as I don't know if I would make good king,_ Simba thought

He began to imagine what it would be like if they got married and he as it was expected since his birth became king and she his queen, how would they deal with all this responsibility? Would the subjects accept them as they accepted his parents or would they see them as unfit to rule? He felt anxious suddenly there was so little he actually knew he knew he loved Nala but he was uncertain about the remaining infinite variables of life, his instant of realization and brief panic attack was cut off by his father's voice

"I need to speak to my brother briefly" the king said walking into his brothers den "we'll continue after I'm done"

Simba sat in silence staring off and as if they could guess the subject on his mind, two voices sang in a high pitch

"She's your queen to be…" Tojo began singing, Simba glared at his friends knowing the song well

"A vision of perfection, an object of affection, to quench your royal fiiiire" Malka continued the song

"Completely, free from infection, to be used at your discretion" the prince shook his head embarrassed

"Waiting only, for your DIRECTION!"

"Your queen, to beeeeeeeeee!" Tojo and Malka finished together in a loud and off pitch final note

"I'm going to kill you two" Simba muttered


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm back with a new chapter guys! you know the drill read and review and I shall love you forever.**

**-****AZ**

**Chapter 7**

Kula felt very confused so she decided she will talk to her best friend Nala ask for some advice while they walked back home

"Nala… were you always sure about your feelings for Simba?" the brown lioness asked

"Well, I've always loved Simba and he loved me but I just didn't realized it what it was until we actually kissed" she explained

"When you guys first started dating was it weird or awkward?" Kula asked

"Not really, we're a little too comfortable with each other actually" with Nala chuckled

"What do you mean?" Kula asked confused

"Well with me and Simba, the transition wasn't that hard, it's like we've always been in a relationship" Nala shrugged "we were always paired up for some reason, it feels-"

"Like you're meant to be together?" her friend added

"Exactly" the lighter lioness smiled "why are you asking me all this Kula?"

"I'm very confused" she admitted "I thought I was happy with Chumvi I really did; I thought I had moved on"

"But?" Nala asked sitting next to her

"But Tojo happened, I wanted things to back to normal and be his friend again" Kula sighed "but every moment I spend with him makes me realize that I'm still not over him"

"You don't like Chumvi anymore?" her friend questioned

"I'm not sure I ever did, being with him just doesn't feel right" Kula lowered her head

"Then you should talk to him" Nala suggested placing a paw on Kula's shoulder "maybe not mention Tojo, but tell him about your feelings"

"But wouldn't it be dumb to break up with Chumvi because of Tojo? I don't even know how he feels about me" Kula groaned

_You may not know but I do_ Nala thought "well maybe after you settle things with Chumvi, you can find out" she smiled

"You mean asking him!?" Kula's scarlet eyes widen

"Or telling him how you feel" Nala smirked

"Kings above" Kula whispered "why is love so complicated for some of us? you're so lucky You'll never have to go through this you have no choice but to be with Simba"

Nala raised an eyebrow "what do you mean no choice?"

_Oh crap, I forgot she doesn't know _Kula thought "I-I think him gonna go talk to Chumvi right now, thanks for the talk it really helped. Bye! " she said as fast as she could laughing nervously before running off and leaving Nala calling her name, Kula had said too much and she knew it, it wasn't her place to tell Nala about this.

Later that day some of the made their way towards the grasslands to give the younger ones a hunting lesson

"Alright ladies, today we're gonna go over some of the basic hunting formations" Bahira said to the group of teens "but first let's find some shadow I'm fried"

Meanwhile Nala had zoned out to her own thoughts, _what in the world did Kula mean by 'you have no choice but to be with Simba' _she wondered as the group began moving towards the nearby trees but before she could join them Nala was stopped

"Nala dear, could come here for a second?" Sarabi said

"We need to have a word with you" Sarafina who was standing next to the queen said

"Um sure" the young lioness said walking towards them _oh no, this_ _can't be good_ Nala thought "am I in trouble?" she whispered to her mom and she laughed

"On the contrary dear" Sarabi smiled "we are rather impressed with you"

"You are?" the young lioness asked raising an eyebrow

"Of course we are sweetie" Sarafina beamed

"We think you're ready" the queen added Nala raised an eyebrow and she continued "to begin training with me" the queen smiled

"You mean for the first solo hunt ceremony?" Nala asked

"You've already took down a prey by yourself, I'm sure the ceremony will cubs play for you" Sarafina laughed

"Yes, but if you wish you wish you can still train with your friends after we're done" the two adults nodded

"Wait, what will you be training me for?" the teal eyed lioness asked confused

"To become queen of course" the amber eyed queen answered

"What?!" Nala said jumping back a bit "How can I begin my training if we're not- if we" Nala took a deep breath trying to calm herself before continuing "don't you think it's a little too soon for you to even think about training me?

"I was just little older than you when Mufasa's mother Uru began training me" the queen smiled fondly

"But-but you must have been betrothed to him already" the young lioness shook her head

"Yes, I was" Sarabi said scrunching her eyebrows together

"Simba and I have been for a while, but we're not betrothed" Nala scoffed

Sarabi and Sarafina slowly turned towards each other "you didn't tell her?" the queen asked her friend Sarafina who sighed and shook her head

"Tell me what?" the young lioness questioned

"Nala, you and Simba were betrothed at birth" her mother answered

Nala opened her mouth but nothing came out after a few seconds she echoed quietly "betrothed at birth" _so that's what Kula was talking about_ she thought "so I have no choice but to marry Simba" she said to herself

"Nala?" Sarafina asked concerned

"I'll leave you two alone to talk, excuse me" Sarabi said leaving mother and daughter alone

"Sweetie are you okay?" Sarafina walked towards her daughter

"Why didn't you tell me? How could you keep something like this from me?" The young lioness said finding her voice

"Nala is it really that big of a deal?" Sarafina sighed

"It is mom! You made the biggest decision of my life for me without even telling me!" Nala was now aggravated

"Will you at least let me explain? I just-" the mother began

"You just wanted to secure me a husband before I even opened my eyes!" her daughter snapped at her cutting her off

"Control your temper young lady; I raised you better than that" Sarafina reprehended

"Of course you raised me to be a king's wife! Forgive my outburst mother and excuse while I go find my future husband" Nala said sarcastically before storming off


	8. Chapter 8

**this chapter and the next one are going to be mostly flashbacks **

**Chapter 8 **

After her outburst Sarafina gave Nala some time to calm down on her on before going to look for her, she decided that she would tell her daughter the truth the whole truth.

"There you are" Sarafina said giving her daughter a small smile

"I really don't feel like talking to you right now" Nala hissed

"Then just listen to me" her mom said and looked at her with pleading eyes

"Fine" the young lioness grumbled

"Your father and lived in a small pride not far from here-" Sarafina began

"Oh so you finally decided to talk me about my father!" Nala exclaimed

"Yes Nala. May I continue?" the older lioness said keeping her calm

"As you wish" Nala rolled her eyes and continued with what she had to say.

**-Flashback-**

_Sarafina woke up with a smile on her face after feeling the cub inside of her kicking_

_"Kano, honey wake up" she shook her sleeping mate_

_"Huh? What is it?" the cream colored male turned his sleepy gaze to Sarafina_

_"The cub is kicking" she smiled_

_"What?" his blue eyes widen_

_"Here, feels it" she smiled placing his paw on her growing belly_

_"She really is kicking!" he said delighted_

_"She?" his mate asked "How do you know it's not a he?"_

_"I just know it, she's our little gift from the kings" he shrugged keeping his paw on her belly_

_"I'll tell you what if she actually is a girl we'll name her just that, Nala"_

_"Nala" he repeated with a smile_

_"Yes" she smiled back_

_"Our little Nala, princess Nala, queen Nala!" he said proudly "yes i like how it sounds, it has a nice ring to it" the two giggled_

_"Kano!" an elderly lioness ran inside the den panting and gasping for air_

_"Mother, what's wrong?" He asked concerned_

_"A group of rogues is approaching, war is imminent my son" Kudeka told her son_

_"Mother, gather the lionesses and her cubs we need to get everyone out of here as soon as possible"_

_"Right away" she said leaving the den_

_"We're leaving?" Sarafina asked_

_"Yes, you are"_

_"What do you mean? You're not coming?"_

_"The lionesses have young cubs to take care of and you're pregnant, I'm the only one that can fight right now"_

_"But they outnumber you, you can't win"_

_"No, but I can stay and distract them while you run"_

_"Kano, please" she pleaded with tearful eyes_

_"I'm the king; it's my duty to defend my pride Sarafina. I'm doing this for them, for you and for Nala"_

_"We're ready to leave" Kudeka said walking inside the den_

_"Sarafina I need you to lead them to the Pridelands and find king Mufasa he'll make sure you're all safe, can you do that for me?"_

_"Yes" she said with her voice cracking_

_"I love you"_

_"I love you too" they whispered to each other_

_"Be strong for her, now go!" he said before she left with tears in her eyes._

_The three lionesses picked up their cubs and followed Sarafina and Kudeka through the grasslands running as fast as they could, tears streamed down Sarafina's when she heard roars and growls and Kano's cries of pain she decided to not turn around if she did she would run back there and try to defend her beloved_

_"They're coming to get us!" one lioness yelled and the others panicked_

_"What are going to do?"_

_"Where should we go?"_

_"Everybody calm down" said Sarafina took in her surroundings the river that crossed through the grasslands until they became a thick jungle and the mountains hid behind them a desert "we need to go west crossing the desert is the fastest way to the Pridelands"_

_"No, we should follow the river and go to the jungle"_

_"The desert is no place for a cub"_

_"They will not survive there" the mothers argued _

_"None of us will survive if we stay here arguing" the elder lioness said_

_"The Pridelands is the safest place for us" the pregnant lioness tried to reason with them_

_"I'm not going into the desert"_

_"Me neither"_

_"I'm following the river" the lionesses said picking up their cubs and headed towards the river_

_"But we need to stick together!" Sarafina yelled trying to get them to come back_

_"Sarafina they've made their decision, we need to go" Kudeka pulled her on the opposite direction._

_And so the lionesses parted ways the three young mothers and their cub followed the river's course and Sarafina and Kudeka began climbing the mountain from above they could see the blood covered rogues roaming through the lands one of them roared calling the others attention of the group he then began following the river, he found the lionesses trace, Sarafina froze with terror but Kudeka nudged her to continue_

_"We have to move on" the elder lioness told the younger one_

_"But-"_

_"We need to keep going before they track us too"_

_the two lioness reached the desert and soon discovered that they weren't ready for what was to come days of no food or water under the burning sun their soft paws blistering with the heat of the sand and the freezing Temperatures of the night this was all too much for Kudeka after the fifth day the pregnant lioness had to continue the journey alone, Sarafina was much too weak to notice when the sand turned into rock under her paws she just kept walking not noticing the scattered bones on the floor, she slipped and fell too weak to get up she stayed on the floor soon unconscious._

_Meanwhile on the border of the Pridelands Mufasa accompanied by his majordomo was doing his nocturnal patrol everything seemed perfect and he was about to go home when a heart wrenching scream stopped him_

_"Zazu -" Mufasa said with a commanding voice_

_"On my way sire" the bird flew ahead and followed the screams towards the elephant graveyard once there the hornbill saw a cream colored lioness on the ground panting and a group of hyenas approaching her luckily Mufasa was right behind him and with a powerful roar he scared off the hyenas, he then turned to the lioness_

_"Please" Sarafina whimpered "my cub" and she then began screaming again_

_"Sire I think she's in labor" was the last thing she heard before her vision became blurry and she was unconscious yet again._


	9. Chapter 9

**_hey there! _**

**_to answer to your question _****_Carmen738_****_, I really don't know how many chapters there is left, this was supposed to be a one-shot experiment thing but it escalated to this lol ._**

**_Machine Dragon you are amazing thank you for your constant reviews my friend :)_**

**_-AZ_**

**Chapter 9**

**-Flashback continues-**

Sarafina opened her eyes to blinding light around her whispers she at first she thought she was dead but after a few seconds her vision became clear and she could see that it was day now and she was in a den surrounded by lions, lionesses and a monkey of some type she groaned and looked around the monkey smiled waved his hands at the small crowd "Get the king and queen"

He then placed a turtle shell filled with a green liquid in front of her "drink it, you both need it"

Sarafina gasped remembering that the last thing she heard before she blacked out was that she was in labor; she looked down at her belly and noticed that it was still bulging, her cub was still there.

"King Mufasa brought you here and called me to check on you" the monkey speaks "Your cub is doing just fine, but it wasn't ready come out yet"

"She it's a she, Nala." Sarafina whispered "and thank you…"

The monkey gave her a gentle smile and a nod "old Rafiki is just doing his job"

"How is she doing?" a deep masculine voice asked a red manned lion and sand colored lioness made their way towards her

"Come see for yourself your majesty" the monkey said signaling towards Sarafina

"They're both real fighters" the baboon smiled

"They sure are" the regal lion nodded "I'm Mufasa this is my mate Sarabi"

Sarabi then asked with a gentle voice "how are you feeling?"

"I-I'm Fine… thanks to you your majesty" the pregnant lioness answered bowing her had at the king

"No need to thank me, I'm glad to help" Mufasa smiled

"Kano said you were a kind ruler" Sarafina shared, her heart hurt when she mentioned her mate's name

"So you're from Kano's pride?" Mufasa asked concerned "what happened? How did you get here?"

"Yes. he is- was my mate, a group of rogues attacked the pride he sacrificed his life so the rest of us could run, Kano told us to come here and seek help but they're all gone now" Sarafina explained sobbing in her paws

"I'm so sorry" Sarabi said putting her paw on hers

"And now I'm all that's left from my pride" Sarafina whispered

"You and your cub" the queen reminded her, Sarafina nodded with a small smile Sarabi was right she still had her cub, her little gift.

"You are welcome to stay and please know that we are all here for you" Mufasa said reassuringly

"Thank you very much, for everything" Sarafina said wiping her tears

The king nodded "I must get going, but Rafiki and Sarabi will take good care of you" Mufasa left and the males followed leaving only the lionesses and the healer inside the den.

"We're going to get you back to being healthy and strong by the time your cub arrives" Sarabi tried cheering her up

"Oh yes, but remember my queen that you need to take care of yourself as well" Rafiki grinned

"I'm fine Rafiki" Sarabi rolled her eyes playfully

"And we want you to stay that way your majesty" Rafiki laughed

"You're pregnant too?" Sarafina asked with a small smile

"Yes, it's my fist cub" the queen beamed "I'm due in a couple weeks"

"The two future mothers are going need plentiful food, rest and water" Rafiki turned to the rest of the lionesses while Sarabi and Sarafina talked.

"We'll make sure they get the three" a young lioness bowed

"Thank you all" Sarabi bowed her head as the lionesses left for their morning hunt

"I must be on my way too, I will come back tomorrow morning" the healer curtsied exiting the den.

"Where is everyone going?" Sarafina asked

"Patrol and hunt" the queen explained "normally I would join them but since I'm due in a couple of weeks they're making me stay. It's nice to have some company" The cream colored lioness smiled at the queen.

The night the prince of the Pridelands was born Rafiki had a vision which he depicted on his tree of life, next the prince was a lioness with light fur and bluish green eyes above them the Pridelands royal marking, this was the king's way to send a sign he told Mufasa and Sarabi but the two were still surprised when the next day Sarafina gave birth to a female cub that looked exactly like Rafiki's depiction.

"I'm honored by your proposal" Sarafina said as she held her newborn daughter in her paws "but betrothing them so early on in life…"

"I know it seems strange Sarafina, but this is what we accustom here" Sarabi explained

"We believe that by the time we are born our future is already written in the stars" Mufasa added

"The great kings of the past informed me of their plan the night Simba was born" Rafiki told her and with a reassuring smile he added "they are never wrong and they want the best for us all"

"She would get to be the princess and queen Kano wanted her to be" Sarabi smiled

Sarafina looked down at her daughter's unique eyes perfect blend of her own green eyes and Kano's blue ones, Kano was now among the stars and she thought that perhaps he was the one that gave Rafiki the vision

"And It would be an honor for us if you accepted" Mufasa said solemnly

"I do, I betroth my daughter to your son"

**-End of flashback-**

"I wanted you to have everything your father wanted for you and I thought that betrothing you to Simba would ensure you did" Sarafina told Nala "I-I'm sorry you're not happy with the decision I made" The young lioness nodded in silence still processing all the information she was given "But I did this so your father's sacrifice wouldn't be in vain"

Nala looked up at with a frown but her face softened when she saw tears on her mother's green eyes "I appreciate you telling me all this and your intentions" she said simply and her mother smiled wiping her tears "However that doesn't mean I approve of you making decisions for me without me knowing"

"I know" Sarafina sighed

"I will train with Sarabi because it's my decision to do so" Nala said looking away from her mother

"I appreciate that Nala" Sarafina said, her daughter gave her a nod in response before she stood up and turned away to leave.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

After leaving her mother behind Nala walked through the grasslands, she was missing hunting practice and she was about to interrupt the males training, _who caress I'm a princess and future queen I can do whatever I want _she thought bitterly scoffing at herself for sounding so much like a young Simba, _this is important I need to talk to him _she told herself after walking for a while found the group of males gathered the young ones were being trained by the adults of the pride

"Simba!" Nala called making her way through the group of to get to the golden prince "Simba!" when she found him he was in the middle of a one of one fighting demonstration with Chumvi , she walked right between the two

"Nala what are you doing here?" he asked surprised to see her around him the rest of the group seemed as surprised as he was "is everything okay?"

"Oh it is not! Wait till you hear this, I was talking to my mother and yours and they told me that we-" Nala stopped her rant when she felt everyone's eyes on them and heard some whispers "um maybe we should somewhere else private..."

"Good idea" Simba laughed nervously "Roku, could I be excused for a moment?" he asked his instructor

"Of course Prince Simba" the huge brown manned lion replied

"Sorry…" Nala said ashamed to have interrupted the lesson

"Don't worry Miss Nala" the older lion chuckled

Simba then led Nala away from the group "you were saying?" he asked smiling at the beautiful lioness

"I was talking to our mothers and they told me that you and I are betrothed" Nala told him pausing at the end to hear and look at his reaction

"Yeah..." Simba answered raising an eyebrow and nodding for her to continue

"Did you hear what I just said? We're betrothed; THEY betrothed us when we were infants" the lioness exclaimed getting agitated

"Yes, that type of betrothal it's a tradition that goes back generations" the prince said calmly

"So you knew about this?" the young female demanded

"Um yes… didn't you?" he laughed nervously

"Of course not!" she boasted "My mother never mentioned this to me until today she finally decided to tell me the whole story"

"Zazu told me when we were cubs, and I asked my parents and they confirmed it and explained everything to me" the prince explained her

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked looking down at her paws

"I was a cub; you were my best friend I didn't want to make things awkward" Simba admitted

"Did they also tell you about my father?" She frowned

"They did" he sighed "Nala I don't know if you`ve noticed but you`ve always had the special treatment that you as a princess deserved"

"So everyone knew except me" the lioness mumbled

"I sure Tojo doesn't know" he gave her a small smile trying to lighten up the mood but she responded by glaring at him

"Sweetie" the young lion sighed putting his paw on hers "I know you're upset because no one told you but-"

"It's not just that" she grunted moving her paw and turning away from him

"What is it then?" he asked disconcerted

"They betrothed us Simba! That's what's upsetting me" she snapped turning around to look at him

"Oh I'm sorry I didn't realize being betrothed to me was so terrible!" he spat back

"That's not what I meant Simba-Ugh!" she tried to explain herself flustered with frustration "Doesn't all this bother you?"

"What bothers me is that the lioness I love is getting so upset over the idea of marrying me" the prince frowned in a gravelly voice

Nala opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't think of anything to say she looked in to his scarlet eyes and saw how full of hurt they were bringing tears to her own that she refused to release with a shaky voice she spoke "Simba…"

"Forget it" he sighed shutting his eyes "I have to get back to training" the prince said a cold tone of voice before opening his eyes and walking past Nala leaving her behind to look for the group she whipped the streaming tears from her face before leaving the place to find somewhere she could gather her thoughts as she tried to do earlier before her mother found her after all that the only person she wanted to talk to was Simba but now he didn't wanted to speak to her and to no wonder, she had truly hurt and offended the prince yet she didn't feel like apologizing to him she just wanted to be alone for the moment.

Back at pride rock Sarafina walked up and sat next to the queen with a downcast look on her apple green eyes "how did it go?"

"I told her everything, and she agreed to train with you" she talked in a flat tone

"Oh well that's good I guess" Sarabi gave her a small smile

"I don't know Sara" the lighter lioness sigh "she thinks I'm a horrible mother for going behind her back and making such a big decision for her and she's probably right, I am a horrible mother"

"Fina your intentions were good, I know you love your daughter more than anything in the world you did it for her own good" the amber eyed lioness said "maybe she doesn't thinks so right now but maybe later she will"

"Oh no- that girl is just like her father, stubborn, proud, always thinks she's right" Sarafina said in a brittle voice "once she gets an idea on her head it's there to stay"


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The next morning Nala was nudged and awoken by her mother "Sarabi is waiting for you, its time to start your lessons sweetie" Nala lifted her head and looked around everyone else was still asleep "a princess raises early" her mother said simply gesturing for her to follow

"Way too early" the young lioness grumbled

"Quit whining Nala" Sarafina warned before exiting the de, Nala rolled her eyes and turned to look at Simba they hadn't talked after he left her on the grasslands she sighed she would deal with that situation later so turned back to follow her mother out.

The two lionesses were waiting for her, both looking radiant and well rested she grunted dragging herself outside the den looking at the two females with her swollen eyes product of crying so hard the night before and sitting in front of them.

"Nala is important that you know that as a princess and future queen, you've got duties, responsibilities, and expectations; you must think, speak and behave the proper way." Sarabi said in a serious tone

"And that is just what we are going to be teaching you" Sarafina added

"We?" Nala asked bluntly "I thought Sarabi was going to train me"

"I also happen to know a couple of things about being queen" her mother explained

"Oh, you're going to teach me to keep secrets and hide the truth?" the younger lioness asked in mocked enthusiasm

"Enough with the attitude" Sarafina ordered and her daughter looked away from her

Sarabi cleared her throat and spoke "Nala dear, I'll be in charge of teaching you everything you need to know about the Pridelands, hunting regulations, migration cycles, the circle of life, etc. however your mother will be in charge of teaching you etiquette and diplomatic behavior so I don't have to neglect my duties" the amber eyed queen then asked "is that alright with you?"

Nala sighed and nodded her head at the queen and mumbled "I guess"

"Speak clearly Nala" Sarafina ordered, the young lioness resisted the urge to roll her eyes she felt like a cub again when her mother would tell her to act more lady like, the young lioness remembered her mother's do's and don'ts she had a feeling this whole training would consist of her mother nagging her like she used to_ no mumbling, no slouching, no fighting, no roughhousing, watch your temper, never raise your voice, watch your manners Nala!_ She heard her mother's voice inside her head "yes Sarabi, yes mother" she said not hear Sarafina's nagging again.

"Good" the two lionesses said at once

"Let's proceed then" Sarabi said

"You must always maintain a regal gait never show a thing you feel inside, be charming yet distant, speak only when necessary but never be at a loss for words" Sarafina explained

"Well that sounds easy and fun" Nala said sarcastically, her mother raised a warning brow at her "sorry"

"As the princess you should always look your best grooming yourself is a must, watch your posture, tummy in and lift your chin" the mother said circling her, Nala adjusted her posture as she proceeded "Step lightly, keep your breath gentle, and smile brightly and when you need to greet someone you nod politely"

Day one and Nala was already overwhelmed from hearing all the rules, Sarabi were officially in charge teaching her the do's and the don'ts of princess etiquette, learning all that was going to take a while.

"Good morning ladies" Mufasa said walking towards them with Simba, Roku, and Chumvi following close by

"Heading out already?" Sarabi asked her mate

"We need to check the borders Zazu received some complains…" while he explained to the situation to the lionesses Nala and Simba exchanged and awkward silent glance the two sat looking down at their own paws or looking away pretending to be distracted by the surroundings "well, we better get going, we'll see you all later" the king said gesturing for the group of males to follow him after a few steps he turned and said "oh! And Good luck with your training Nala"

"Thank you sir" the young lioness nodded and smiled at the king as they walked away, Simba turned to look at her and then to his father

"Training?" Simba inquired

"Yes, your mother and Sarafina began training her today" the king replied

"She agreed to it?" The prince asked hesitantly

"Yes, why wouldn't she?" Mufasa raised a questioning brow, Simba's eyes widen he didn't told his father what happened the previous day about Nala's hesitations and how he lost his temper, he was embarrassed at how he handled the situation and now he felt bad knowing that Nala was making an effort and he was just being a spoiled prince he needed to apologize "never mind… can I have some time off after we're done with this?" he asked his father with a grin

"Sure" Mufasa said giving his son an amused look

"Thanks dad" the prince smiled

"Is everything alright son?"

"Yeah, of course" Simba lied "look at those vultures circling near the borders, we should go check it out" the prince said making his father drop the subject to focus on his finding.

Hours later Nala continued her training with only her mother after Sarabi left to lead the hunt.

"Bayede baba Sikhokhele bo Busa lomhlaba Ngo thando…" Nala recited sitting as straight as she could and trying hard to remember the words to the ancient son she was reciting

"Louder Nala" Sarafina commanded circling around her

"Shwele baba Siyakubongela Usi lethel' injabulo Noxolo!" She obeyed raised her voice

"Enunciate! You must be understood by everyone, otherwise it's pointless" Sarafina corrected

"THIS is pointless" Nala said under her breath

"I heard that" her mother turned glaring at her

"Why do I need to do this?" the younger lioness asked sighing "nobody understands Zulu anymore"

"It's all part of your training; a princess must be fluent in many languages so she can communicate with her subjects. Now start again from the top!" she ordered.

Nala was exhausted and extremely frustrated she was doing all this because she loved Simba, no other reason and she was already starting to wondered if it was really worth it, _All this just to be with you Simba _she thought_._

**_-AN-_**

_**hello my fellow pridelanders, what did you think of this chapter? oh also**__** did you guys watched the lion guard? and what did you think of it? are you gonna watch the series?**_

_**so many questions I know I just like reading your thoughts on the reviews thank you for those by the way :)**_

_**-Az**_


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm so sorry it took me so long to post this chapter I promise it won't happen again thank you for your kind reviews!**

**Chapter 12**

As soon as the prince arrived back home he began his search for Nala, she wasn't with by the waterhole with their friends and she wasn't on sunbathing on the flat rocks with the hunting party either but he kept looking for her.

Meanwhile inside the den Sarafina was giving her daughter even more instructions on how to be a good queen, Nala had enough of her mother's lessons for one day and she wasn't really listening anymore

"You must be supportive and care for your king's feelings" the mother advised this caught her daughter's attention

"And what if he isn't supportive and doesn't care about my feelings?" she retorted

"What are you talking about child?" Sarafina questioned

"Simba" her daughter answered "I told him how I felt about all this and he got mad at me!"

"He's mad at you?" the mother echoed

"Yes, can you believe it? I-" Nala spoke before her mother cut her off

"You need to apologize" she said simply

"What? No!" her daughter said firmly "He completely misunderstood me and overreacted"

"Nala, you will apologize" Sarafina said looking past Nala "and you will do it now" she muttered with a smile on her face

"Good afternoon Sarafina" Nala rolled her eyes hearing Simba's voice

"Good afternoon Simba" the lioness smiled

"Could I speak with Nala for a moment?" he asked politely

"Of course I was about to dismiss her" Sarafina replied giving her daughter a look before she left the two alone.

"Hey" Simba gave her a small smile

"Hey Simba" Nala said looking away

"I wanted to apologize about how I reacted yesterday" the young prince said making her smile "I should've know you would come around"

Nala's smile fell "what do you mean?"

"I mean I should've know you couldn't really be that upset to find out you're a princess and that you're betrothed to a prince" he said making her frown "that would be a little silly" he laughed

Feeling too tired to argue Nala simply nodded her head and forced a smile "right…"

"How's training going?" the prince asked

"Awful" Nala groaned "there are rules for everything"

"Yeah" Simba chuckled "you'll get used to them"

"I really doubt that" Nala muttered to herself

"Hey… would you like to go for a walk with me?" the prince asked with a smile wanting to leave all this recent drama behind them.

"I actually just wanted to rest before my hunting practice…" she answered and his ears dropped, _you must be supportive and care for your king's feelings_ her mother's voice echoed on her mind "but I would love to go with you" she answered plastering on a smile which he returned.

Meanwhile by the Kula passed back and forth so many times the animals that saw her by the river thought he was going to leave a permanent dent on the sandy ground if she didn't stopped soon but the young lioness had a huge decision to make.

"You know passing like that is not going to take you anywhere..."

The lioness turned to see Tojo sitting in a nearby rock looking down at her.

"Oh- I was just- I'm..." she stuttered nervously "...waiting for Chumvi" Tojo's heart sank a bit. _Of course she's waiting for Chumvi, her boyfriend Chumvi_ he thought "do you know when he's coming back?"

"Oh…He's with his father" Tojo explained looking away as she nodded silently "you know I've been thinking about what you said and I think it's time I get a girlfriend"

Kula's eyes widen when she felt him sitting next to her and didn't dared to look at him "that's great…just great" she answered in a tight voice

"Really?" The young lion asked skeptical and then smirked

"Of course" Kula taking a step back "have someone in mind?"

"Yeah… there's one problem though" Tojo said

"What?" the lioness asked looking away avoiding eye contact

"I don't know if she likes me back and I've been too scared to tell her" he says "It doesn't matter anyways I think I already lost my chance with her"

"You always do this; you always show up when I'm trying to get over you and confuse me all over again" she said with tears filling her eyes

"Kula, I'm not trying to confuse you. Honestly I love-" the lion said walking closer to her and holding her face

"Don't do this Tojo not right now" she said backing away "Chumvi and I are together now-"

"But you don't love him and he doesn't loves you like I do" he sighed

"Tojo…" she sniffed moving his paw away

"Kula, please give me a chance" he pleaded

"Kula!" a voice called and the two turned to them, Chumvi was standing a few feet away from them

"I gotta go" was all she said before leaving Tojo to go with her boyfriend. Tojo flopped down on the ground groaning loudly

"Tojo?" A female voice asked and he looked up expecting to see Kula and couldn't hide his disappointment when he saw Nala and Simba standing in front of him

"Are you okay dude?" the prince asked

"I just told Kula I love her" he muttered

"And what did she say?" Nala asked

"Nothing… she just left with him" Tojo muttered

"Maybe you caught her off guard" the princess said "maybe she wasn't ready to hear that at the moment" she glanced at Simba hoping he understood what she meant

"You have to be patient and understanding. Give her time to a process things" the prince advised his friend but kept his eyes on Nala

"Yeah, yeah" their friend sighed "I see you two worked things out, that's great" he got up walking past the couple "you two make me believe in happily ever after's"

"Where are you going?" the boyfriend and girlfriend asked

"I… just need to be alone" he said leaving with his head down, the prince sighed and turned to his betrothed

"I think I get it now" he said looking up at her unique eyes "I know this is a lot to process, us being betrothed, finding out you're a princess and the whole training and I'm sorry for being so pushy… it's just because I love you"

"I love too Simba" she sighed nuzzling him and resting her head on his shoulder "and it is a lot, the training specially. I don't if I can do it; there are so many things to remember and to learn and rules to follow"

"We'll get through it" he said nuzzling her "together"


End file.
